Barcelona-based studio <a href="http://www.forwardthinkingarchitecture.com/" target="_blank">Forward Thinking Architecture</a> has envisioned a way to transform the inhospitable Arabian Peninsula into a global agricultural hub by establishing a link between the desert, renewable energy, and water-saving hydroponic agriculture. Their OAXIS project would blanket over 1,447,795 square miles of sandy terrain with a huge modular <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/hydroponics/" target="_blank">hydroponic system</a> that would produce solar energy and use an underground transportation system to deliver crops to adjacent cities.

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The OAXIS facilities would incorporate a prefabricated modular structure with recycled steel. Several passive strategies would control the building’s environment and produce energy.

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Roof-mounted photovoltaic panels would supply enough energy for the facilities, the artificial LED lighting and the underground conveyor belt system.

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Excess energy would be fed into the city electric grid.

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Recycled water coming from the hydroponic farming technology will be used for irrigation of the exterior vegetation, allowing plants and biodiversity to expand around the facilities.

There are several projects envisioning the use of solar energy and hydroponics in the region, but OAXIS is the first one to combine the two.

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It creates a self-sufficient prototype that can tackle food shortage, imports and lack of renewable energy issues.

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The project could transform the barren desert environment into a thriving crop-growing area.

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It relies on renewables to establish an efficient network across the entire Arabian Peninsula.

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OAXIS ForwardThinkingArchitecture

Barcelona-based studio Forward Thinking Architecture has envisioned a way to transform the inhospitable Arabian Peninsula into a global agricultural hub by establishing a link between the desert, renewable energy, and water-saving hydroponic agriculture. Their OAXIS project would blanket over 1,447,795 square miles of sandy terrain with a huge modular hydroponic system that would produce solar energy and use an underground transportation system to deliver crops to adjacent cities.